MyLibraryDV now available

HCPL has a new service for your viewing pleasure: MyLibraryDV, offering viewers digital downloadable videos on demand. Click on the link above or go to "Library Services, Branches, & Jobs" on the HCPL homepage and then click on "MyLibraryDV" right in the center of the page.

Using MyLibraryDV is easy. First, users need to download an application on their home computers in order to view the DVs. Once it is downloaded, users will then have access to a selection of classic, independent, and foreign films, as well as an impressive variety of instructional, travel, health and fitness, and other useful and entertaining videos, all viewable on home computers. MyLibraryDV includes kids' programs as well.

The video entertainment selection includes Academy Award winners and other classic films. Some of the entertainment videos include William Castle's campy horror film House on Haunted Hill, starring Vincent Price, Frank Capra's last "social statement" film Meet John Doe, and the Italian Neo-Realist classic, Roberto Rossellini's Open City. The foreign film collection goes beyond Open City, to include films on video from China, Finland, Spain, Russia, and many other lands.

Check it out...or more accurately, click on it, and watch videos on demand from your library, right in your home, through MyLibraryDV.

Hitchcock Film Festival

On February 24th, the Bel Air Art Commission presents the Hitchcock Film Festival at the Bel Air Armory. Two Hitchcock films will be shown... at 1 p.m. Rear Window and at 3:30 Strangers on a Train. Popcorn and refreshments will be available. Go watch a movie and get ready for the Oscars, which air the night of February 24th.

And the Oscar nominees are...

The Oscar nominations were just announced this morning! Two movies, No Country for Old Men and There Will Be Blood, led the nominations garnering eight each. The following movies were nominated for Best Picture of the year: Atonement, Juno, Michael Clayton, No Country for Old Men, and There Will Be Blood. The Oscars are February 24th! Do you think they will go on with the writers' strike still going on? I missed watching the Golden Globes, and will definitely miss the Oscars if they are not on. Will you miss seeing the awards too?

And the nominees are....

The Golden Globe nominations were announced this morning. The movie Atonement starring Keira Knightley led the nominations with seven. In the Best Motion Picture category, the nominees are... American Gangster, Atonement, Eastern Promises, The Great Debaters, Michael Clayton, No Country for Old Men, and There Will Be Blood. I have only seen one of the nominated movies. Do you have a favorite among the nominees??

Reunited...

No matter your musical taste, there may be a reunion tour coming to suit your fancy.

December 10 marks the first live performance from Led Zeppelin in many years, albeit with Jason Bonham, son of their late original drummer John, playing the drums. The show will be in London. Over one million people registered to get a chance to buy only 20,000 tickets, which were priced at $250 in American dollars.

Rumors are abounding about a forthcoming tour, and with that kind of money to be made, I’d say the odds are good. In the meantime, HCPL has many of the classic Led Zeppelin titles on cd.

If your tastes run to the more recent, and poppy, there’s always the Spice Girls! A force to be reckoned with in the 1990’s, the 5 original members recently reunited, selling out their UK show in 38 seconds. A sold out American tour is following in early 2008. Are they live or are they lip syncing? More rumors abound! Don’t forget to check out Spice World, their foray into film, now available on DVD.

Books to film...

There are many books that have been made into movies. Recently, an article from the San Diego Union-Tribune had a list of movies that were better than the book. Two movies that made the list were The Godfather and The Birds. Check out the article for more titles.

Do you have a preference... the book or the movie? What is your favorite book to film? My favorite is E.M. Forster's A Room with a View.

Name that tune...

We have all done it... hummed a tune for a friend to see if they know what the song is? Now, you can do it online! Midomi will help you find the song you forgot or your friend can't remember. All you need to do is sing or hum into your computer microphone, and Midomi users will help find your song! On Midomi, you can also discover new music or be discovered and develop your own fans!

Big in Germany...

Have you ever wondered what people in other states or countries are listening to?? Check out the Gracenote music map. Just click on a country or state to find out the top ten artists and top ten albums people are listening to! It is a fun site!!!